Up in Smoke on the Square (BACKYARD ONLY)
2025-08-22 – 2025-08-23 · Lincoln, IL · 📍 601 Pulaski Street
Reps: JEANNE TITUS, TINA WELLER · Prize money: $5,000.00
Grand Champion: Electro-Que-ted (357.7144) · 31 teams
Reserve Champion: 🥈 Bramble BBQ
Entries
Top score
Winning margin
Field average
Perfect 180s
Tightest race
Top-10 cutoff
Field spread
Prize money
Double threats
How hot was the win?
Traveled in
Came back for more
Form held
Field strength
Storylines
🧳 Out-of-towners took the title
Electro-Que-ted took the Grand Championship home to AL.
🧹 A double category winner
Electro-Que-ted won Chicken, Pork Ribs — a double, and took the Grand Championship on top of it.
📸 Photo finishes
Chicken places 1–2: Electro-Que-ted and Sugba Smokehouse tied on 178.8572 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 5–6: Too Sauced BBQ and All Smoked Up BBQ tied on 175.4172 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 7–8: Big James Kitchen and LEE LA Q tied on 175.4056 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
🛡️ Back to defend
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: 309 BBQ (won 2023), Up From The Pits BBQ (won 2024).
Score curves (score by finishing position — steep cliffs mean a spread field, flat lines a knife fight)
Category showdown (top / average / median score per meat)
Score distribution
Biggest rating movers (power-rating points won and lost at this contest)
Did form hold? (pre-contest rating vs overall finish — ratings called it if the dots climb to the right)
Where the field came from (home regions on file)
This contest over the years full contest page →
| Date | Where | Venue | Teams | High score | Grand Champion | Reserve Champion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013-08-23 | Lincoln, IL | 46 | 689.6916 | A BOY & HIS BBQ | Twyford's BBQ & Catering | |
| 2014-08-22 | Lincoln, IL 62656 | 50 | 699.4400 | MONSTER-QUE | IT'S 5 O'CLOCK SOMEWHERE | |
| 2015-06-05 | Lincoln, IL 62656 | 40 | 689.0740 | ST. LOUIS BLACK IRON BBQ | THE CHILLY WATER SMOKERS | |
| 2016-06-03 | Lincoln , IL 62656 | 52 | 685.6800 | OUTSIDERS BBQ | TRUCKY'S TRUE BLU BBQ'UE | |
| 2017-06-02 | Kilkapool/Plilaski | 32 | 695.8968 | IT'S 5 O'CLOCK SOMEWHERE | PORK PARADISE | |
| 2018-06-01 | Kilkapool/Plilaski | 40 | 687.3600 | SMOKIN ACES@THEBBQSUPERSTORE.COM | iBQ'n | |
| 2019-05-31 | Lincoln, IL | Lincoln, IL 62656 | 36 | 682.8576 | The BBQ Bus | iBQ'n |
| 2021-06-04 | Lincoln, IL | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2023-08-25 | Lincoln, IL | 601 Pulaski Street | 26 | 346.8344 | 309 BBQ | — |
| 2024-08-23 | Lincoln, IL | 601 Pulaski Street | 28 | 350.8688 | Up From The Pits BBQ | — |
| 2025-08-22 ← this one | Lincoln, IL | 601 Pulaski Street | 31 | 357.7144 | Electro-Que-ted | — |
| 2026-08-28 | Lincoln, IL | — | — | — | — | — |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 178.8572 | 175.4172 | 174.2628 |
| Pork Ribs | 178.8572 | 174.2628 | 173.1200 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Backyard Series
Overall
31 entries · top 357.7144 · median 340.5028
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Electro-Que-ted | |
| 2 | Bramble BBQ | |
| 3 | E SQUARED BBQ | |
| 4 | Too Sauced BBQ | |
| 5 | Skinny Pig BBQ | |
| 6 | Big James Kitchen | |
| 7 | Too Sauced Guys Bar-B-Que | |
| 8 | LEE LA Q | |
| 9 | RobbieQ | |
| 10 | BBQ MIKE | |
| 11 | Sugba Smokehouse | |
| 12 | BBQ Pit Bros | |
| 13 | Rudes BBQ | |
| 14 | All Smoked Up BBQ | |
| 15 | HESSHOGS | |
| 16 | UP FROM THE PITS BBQ | |
| 17 | Sermerstout BBQ | |
| 18 | Snake Holler BBQ | |
| 19 | Must B Smokin' Somethin' BBQ Team | |
| 20 | 309 BBQ | |
| 21 | River City Smoque | |
| 22 | Firehouse 51 | |
| 23 | Body by Que | |
| 24 | Table Muscle BBQ | |
| 25 | Dead End BBQ | |
| 26 | Truck'n Sauced | |
| 27 | Ross & Hoss BBQ | |
| 28 | Bell's Up In Smoke BBQ | |
| 29 | Whatcha Smokin' | |
| 30 | Big B's BBQ | |
| 31 | The Dirty German BBQ |
Chicken
31 entries · top 178.8572 · median 169.1084
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Electro-Que-ted | |
| 2 | Sugba Smokehouse | |
| 3 | BBQ Pit Bros | |
| 4 | Too Sauced Guys Bar-B-Que | |
| 5 | Too Sauced BBQ | |
| 6 | All Smoked Up BBQ | |
| 7 | Big James Kitchen | |
| 8 | LEE LA Q | |
| 9 | Skinny Pig BBQ | |
| 10 | BBQ MIKE | |
| 11 | RobbieQ | |
| 12 | E SQUARED BBQ | |
| 13 | Bramble BBQ | |
| 14 | 309 BBQ | |
| 15 | Must B Smokin' Somethin' BBQ Team | |
| 16 | Rudes BBQ | |
| 17 | Snake Holler BBQ | |
| 18 | River City Smoque | |
| 19 | HESSHOGS | |
| 20 | UP FROM THE PITS BBQ | |
| 21 | Sermerstout BBQ | |
| 22 | Dead End BBQ | |
| 23 | Body by Que | |
| 24 | Ross & Hoss BBQ | |
| 25 | Firehouse 51 | |
| 26 | Table Muscle BBQ | |
| 27 | Truck'n Sauced | |
| 28 | Whatcha Smokin' | |
| 29 | Bell's Up In Smoke BBQ | |
| 30 | Big B's BBQ | |
| 31 | The Dirty German BBQ |
Pork Ribs
31 entries · top 178.8572 · median 166.2972
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Electro-Que-ted | |
| 2 | Bramble BBQ | |
| 3 | E SQUARED BBQ | |
| 4 | HESSHOGS | |
| 5 | Sermerstout BBQ | |
| 6 | UP FROM THE PITS BBQ | |
| 7 | Too Sauced BBQ | |
| 8 | Rudes BBQ | |
| 9 | Skinny Pig BBQ | |
| 10 | Big James Kitchen | |
| 11 | Too Sauced Guys Bar-B-Que | |
| 12 | RobbieQ | |
| 13 | LEE LA Q | |
| 14 | BBQ MIKE | |
| 15 | Snake Holler BBQ | |
| 16 | All Smoked Up BBQ | |
| 17 | BBQ Pit Bros | |
| 18 | Sugba Smokehouse | |
| 19 | Must B Smokin' Somethin' BBQ Team | |
| 20 | River City Smoque | |
| 21 | Firehouse 51 | |
| 22 | 309 BBQ | |
| 23 | Table Muscle BBQ | |
| 24 | Body by Que | |
| 25 | Truck'n Sauced | |
| 26 | Dead End BBQ | |
| 27 | Bell's Up In Smoke BBQ | |
| 28 | Big B's BBQ | |
| 29 | Whatcha Smokin' | |
| 30 | Ross & Hoss BBQ | |
| 31 | The Dirty German BBQ |
Ancillary categories
Run by the organizers alongside the sanctioned contest. These are judged on their own terms and do not count toward the overall score, so they're kept out of the meat stats above.
Ancillary — Steak
12 entries · top 178.8572 · median 174.5714
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Electro-Que-ted | |
| 2 | HESSHOGS | |
| 3 | Must B Smokin' Somethin' BBQ Team | |
| 4 | BBQ Pit Bros | |
| 5 | Snake Holler BBQ | |
| 6 | Big James Kitchen | |
| 7 | Unreal O'Neal | |
| 8 | 309 BBQ | |
| 9 | Dead End BBQ | |
| 10 | Whatcha Smokin' | |
| 11 | Table Muscle BBQ | |
| 12 | Sugba Smokehouse |